Road-grading machine



o. T. DUTRO. ROAD GRADING IMLADHHQE.y

2 Sheets- Sheet 1.

(No Model.)l

No. 545,623. Patented sept. 3, 1895.

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R. uw TE NN BR v0 lN 2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

(No Model.)

O. T. DUTRO. ROAD GRADING MACHINE. No. 545,623.V y Patented Sept. 3,1895.

h INVENTOR.

ATTORNEYS.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

OLIVER T. DUTRO, OF BUFFALO, NEW YORK.

ROAD-GRADING MACHINE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 545,623, dated September 3, 1895. Application filed January 14, 1895. Serial No. 534,759. (No model.)

To all whom-t may concern.'

Be it known that I, OLIVER T. DUTRO, a

citizen of the United States, residing at Buffalo, in the county of Erie and State of New York, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Road Grading Machines, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to a road-grading machine which is designed more particularly for finishing the sub-grade of a street after the same has been roughly or approximately graded by hand-labor or other means and preparatory to laying the pavement.

My invention hasfor its objects to provide an efficient machine'of this character whereby the sub-grade can be expeditiously trimmed and finished; to provide simple means for adjusting the curvature of the cutter to the desired contour of the road-bed; to provide convenient means for raising the cutter clear of the surface of the road-bed in transporting the machine, and also to improve the construction of the machine in other'respeets.

In the accompanying drawings, consisting of two sheets, Figure l is a vertical longitudinal section of my improved machine. Fig. 2 is a sectional rear view of the same. is an enlarged transverse section of the cutter in .line 3 3, Fig. 4. Fig. 4 is a horizontal section in 1ine44, Fig. 3. Fig. 5 is atop plan view of the machine.; Fig. 6 is a transverse vertical section of one of the longitudinal beams of the machine and the adjacent stop'. Fig. 7 is a perspective view of the rear portion of one of said beams. f

Like letters of reference refer to like parts in the several figures.

A represents the front axle, upon which the front wheels A are mounted; B, afifth-wheel of any ordinary construction; b, the usual bolster supported on the upper ring of the fifth-wheel; C, the rear axle; C', theY rear wheels; C2, the tongue or pole, and C3 -the whiffletree.

D represents longitudinal beams which connect the front and rear axles and which are secured at their front portions to the bolster b, While their rear portions rest loosely upon` the rear axle.

E is a transverse horizontal cutter or blade arranged between the two pairs of wheels and adapted to cnt o a slice or layer of the road- Fig. 34

site sides of the main cross-beam.

surface. This cutter extends nearly across the entire width of the machine, the same terminating preferably inside of the inner edges of the wheels, as shown in Figs. '2 and 5, so as to avoid cutting and loosening the ground in front ofthe rear wheels and forming an uneven bearing-surface for said wheels, which would be the case if the cutter extended laterally in front of the wheels. The cutter is suspended by hangers F from a cross-beam G, which straddles the longitudinal beams D, and is secured to the latter by .bolts or rivets. The cross-beam G is preferably composed of a pair of separated parallel channel-bars and flanged topk and bottom plates g, which connect said channel-bars. The hangers F pass upwardly through smooth openings formed in the top and bottom plates of the cross-beam, and each hanger is provided on the upper and lower sides of the beam with clamping-nuts f and f', which bear against the top and bottom plates, respectively. Each hanger is provided at its lower end with a transverse eye f2, which is secured tothe cutter by alongitudinal bolt f 3, passing through said eye and through a pair of perforated parallel lugs f 4 of the cutter, between which lugs the eyey is arranged, as lshown in Fig. 4.

H represents oppositely-inclined end braces which connectthe end portions of the cutter with intermediate transverse angle-bars l, s'ecured to the longitudinal beams D on oppo- J represents intermediate inclined braces which extend from the junctions of the intermediate hangers with the cutters to the intermediate angle-bars I.

Each of the inclined end braces H is provided at its lower end with a longitudinal eye h, which is arranged between a longitudinal lug h of the cutter and the adjacent lug f4, and which is secured to said lugs by a transverse bolt h2, passing through the lugs and the eye. A The intermediate inclined braces J are provided with similar eyes and are secured to lugs ofthe cutter by similar bolts.v These various braces firmly hold the cutter against displacement. By looseningthe lowernuts f of the hangers and tightening the upper nuts fthe cutter may be sprung or bent lengthwise to impart to it a curvature conforming to the desired contour or profile of the road- IOO bed, the cutter and its beams being sufficientlyV centrics in the proper direction to bring their' large rad-ius below their pivots the rear portions of the beams, are elevated, thus raising the cutter to an inoperative position, while upon bringing the small radius of the eccentrics below the pivots the beams are allowed to descend and rest upon the rear axle, thus lowering the cutter to its vnormal operative position. `The longitudinal beams are each preferably composed of two separated parallel channel-bars, and the eccentrics are pivoted between the members of the beams, as shown in Figs. 2, 5, and 6. Each eccentric is provided with a hand-lever k for turning it.

ln raising the cutter the levers of the eccentrics are swung downward on the rear sides of the eccentrics sufciently to pass the deadcenter, as shown by dotted lines in Fig. l, and in order to permit the necessary extent of movement of the levers for thisv purpose the adjacent portion of the outer member of each longitudinal beam is recessed or-cut away, as shown atv Z, Fig. 7. The longitudinal beams are held against lateral and longitudinal displacement on the rear axle by upright stops or standards M, which are secured to the up- 1 per side of the rear axle, on the the inner sides of the longitudinal beams, and which interlock with notches m, formed in the adjacent inner flanges of thebeams, as shown in Figs. l

and (i. These stops or standards are of the necessary height to remain in engagement with the notches of the longitudinal beamsin the most elevated position of the latter. In

its normal position the horizontal cutter is preferably flush with the bearing-points or lower edges of the supporting-wheels of the machine, as shown in the drawings.

ln using the machine, after roughly grading the sub-grade or road-bed in any convenient or well-known manner a number of i trenches or depressed ways for the wheels of the machineare dug lengthwise of the sub-grade, as shown at 'n in Fig. 2, the bottom of these trenches being gaged to a level with the desired ultimate surface of the subgrade and determining the depth of cut of the cutting'blade. A transverse trench extending across the longitudinal trenches is next dug in the road-bed for receiving the cutter. Upon now advancing the machine, with its wheels in two adjacent trenches, the horizontal cutter penetrates` the ground on a level with the bottom of the wheel-trenches and severs the raised layer of earth between the adjacent trenches in a clean smooth manner. The remaining sections of earth are successively cut oft in a similar manner, and the loose ground is then removed, when the subgrade is finished and ready to receive the stones, brick, or other pavement. The curvature of the cutter is readily adj usted to the contour which it is desired to impart to the sub-grade, and the latter is thus finished in one operation without the use of templets or similar gaging devices and without requiring further cutting or' scraping of its surface. In order to adapt the machine to streets of different widths and also to reduce the numvber of longitudinal trenches to a minimum, the wheels are made laterally adjustable on the axle-spindles by means of washers or space-blocks o, which surround the axles. When the wheels bear against the shoulders of the axlespindles, in which position they are adj usted to their narrowest gage, the washers are all interposed between the axle-nuts and the outer side of the wheethubs. When the wheels are adjusted to the broadest gage, all of the washers are interposed between the shoulders of the axle-spindles and the inner sides of the wheel-hubs, as shown in Fig. 5, while when the wheels are placed in positions intermediate of these extreme adjust-ments the washers are arranged partly on the outer side and partly on the inner side ofthe wheels. 3 These various adjustments are eected by rej moving the axle-nuts and the wheels and disposing the washers on the axles in accordance with the desired gage, the axle-nuts being again replaced after making the adjustment.

l ferent gages it may in each case be adjusted to a gage which requires the smallest number of gage-trenches to be dug in the sub-grade, the several trenches bei-ng arranged equidistant and to correspond to the gage of the wheels, whereby the intermediate trenches 1may be twice utilized as wheel-gages, thus reducing the cost of finishing the sub-grade.

When it is desired to transport the machine, the rear portions of the longitudinal beams are raised by means of the eccentrics,

whereby the cutter is elevated a suiii cient distance above the ground to prevent injury to the same.

I claim as my inventionx 1. In a road grading machine, the combination with a wheeled supporting frame, of a 1 transverse horizontal cutting blade suspended 2 from said frame, and adjusting devices wherei y bythe cutting blade is bent or sprung lengthg wise, substantially as set forth.

l 2. In a road grading machine, the combinaa l tion with a wheeled supporting frame and a i' transverse horizontal cutting blade, of a snslpension rod secured at its lower end to the icutting blade, capable of moving vertically in said supporting frame and provided above and below the same with adjusting nuts which l bear against said frame, whereby the suspen- IOO sion rod may be Vadjusted vertically in said frame for bending or curving the cutting blade lengthwise, substantially as set forth.

3; In a road grading machine, the combination with the front and rear axles, of a longitudinal beam or frameconnecting said axles, a cutter carried by said beam or frame, and a cam or eccentric whereby the beam or frame is elevated for raising the cutter, substantially as set forth.

4. The combination with the front and rear axles and longitudinal beams connecting said axles and resting loosely upon the rear axle, a cutter suspended from said beams, and lifting cams or eccentrics pivoted to the rear portions of said beams and adapted to bear against the rear axle, substantially as set forth.

5. The combination with a front and rear axle and a longitudinal beam or frame connecting said axles and resting loosely upon the rear axle, of a stop which holds said beam or frame against longitudinal movement on the rear axle but permits the same to rise and fall with reference to said axle, a cutter carried by said beam or frame, and a lifting de vicje for elevating the rear portion of said beam or frame, substantially as set forth.

6. The combination with the front and rear axles and longitudinal beams connecting said axles, resting loosely upon the rear axles and provided with notches or recesses, of stops secured to the rear axle and engaging with said notches or recesses, cams or eccentrics pivoted to the rear portion of said beams and adapted to bear against the rear axle, and a cutter suspended from said beams, substantially as set forth.

7. In a road grading machine, the combina tion with the front and rear axles and the wheels mounted thereon, of a series of removable washers or space blocks arranged on each of the axle spindles, whereby the wheels may be adjusted laterally on the spindles, substantially as set forth.

Witness my hand this 11th day of January, 1895.

GLIVER T. DUTRO.

Witnesses:

CARL F. GEYER, E. R. DEAN. 

